Christmas pudding a holiday treat

IT'S that time of the year again. Yes, it's time to start thinking about making your Christmas pudding.

How the year has flown by and before we know it we will be in 2012.

I know that there are many who wouldn't think of not presenting a home cooked Christmas pud on the 25th December but for the majority grabbing a commercially made one, this is as good as it gets.

I have to say that if you have ever eaten a home made one you would never go back to the store bought ones.

The taste is so different and what I really enjoy is unveiling the pudding to our guests with pride saying "I made this".

Christmas pudding is high in fat at around 12g of fat per serve but don't forget to add the big dollop of whipped cream and scoop of ice cream. I can feel the indigestion kicking in.

The good news is I have the solution so hopefully I can tempt you into giving my recipe a go.

Not only do you get to have a tasty dessert on Christmas day but it's healthy too.

Even people with diabetes can enjoy a slice, but remember don't go back for seconds.

Here are some tips:

Most people say they're put off making a pudding because it looks too complicated using the cloth which is the traditional way to make a Chrissie Pud. I prefer to use a metal pudding tin as it is so much easier. You can buy these in most kitchen stores.

Make the pudding on a day that you will be home for a few hours as they can take several hours to cook. You will also need to be there to top up the boiler with water so that the pot doesn't boil dry.

I like to make mine about a month before and then leave it in the fridge in the tin covered. You can also freeze the pudding if you wish to make it earlier. Making it before it gets too hot is not a silly idea either.

Making my low fat version is easy. Just follow my recipe in Symply Too Good To Be True 3, it's just as easy as making a fruit cake so give it a go and I bet you will be glad you did.

What to serve with your pudding? Make some low fat custard with skim milk. Peters Light n Creamy low fat ice-cream is ideal or make my Symply Sweet Cream in book 3. If you must have cream use Dairy Whip Lite.

Annette's cookbooks Symply Too Good To Be True Books 1-6 are sold in all good newsagencies.